After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

On the day before the school's break, Chen's mother got up at dawn.

She heated up some flatbreads in the kitchen and cooked a pot of millet porridge, then woke the children up for breakfast. Shi Tou, A Ji, A Fu, Qing Qing, and Li An, the five children, sat around the table, happily drinking their porridge. Li An didn't eat much; he'd been like this for days, and he spoke less. Chen's mother saw this and felt a pang of heartache, but she didn't say anything.

In the afternoon, Chen's mother arrived at the school gate early, before school had even ended. She parked the mule cart under the shade of a tree and waited.

A moment later, the sound of a bell rang out from the school, signaling the end of class. Children, carrying their schoolbags, emerged in twos and threes. Stone, with his sharp eyes, spotted Scholar Liu standing at the door seeing the students off and quickly pulled Aji and Afu over to pay their respects. Scholar Liu patted their heads and offered a few words of encouragement.

Chen's mother picked up her four children and drove the mule cart towards Nanshan Village.

"An'an, I'll give you a surprise when we get back. I'm sure you'll be happy," Chen's mother said to Li An with a smile on her face.

Li An looked up, a glimmer of light in his eyes: "Grandma Chen, what's wrong?"

Chen's mother kept everyone in suspense: "You'll find out when we get back. And there's a lot of delicious food today; your two aunts got up early this morning to prepare it."

Stone leaned closer and asked, "Grandma, what's good to eat? Is there meat?"

Chen's mother chuckled and patted him lightly: "All you ever think about is food. There's meat, plenty to go around."

The children were delighted, chattering excitedly as they guessed what they would be eating. Ang Lee smiled along, but a hint of doubt remained in his eyes.

The mule cart entered the village, rounded the old locust tree, and the Chen family's courtyard gate came into view. The gate was open, smoke billowed from the kitchen chimney, and the aroma of food wafted far and wide.

Ang Lee was the first to jump out of the car and run into the yard.

He was stunned.

Under the old locust tree in the courtyard, a man leaned against a bamboo chair, covered with a thin blanket, squinting in the sun. The man was terribly thin, with sunken cheeks and deep-set eyes, but Li An recognized him at a glance—it was his father, the father he had been thinking about day and night.

"Father!" Li An cried out, his eyes instantly reddening.

He ran over, threw himself into Li Hu's arms, hugged him tightly, and tears streamed down his face. Li Hu's eyes also reddened, and he raised his hand to gently pat his son's back.

"An'an, don't cry, Daddy's back." Li Hu's voice was a little hoarse, but very gentle.

Li An looked up, carefully examining his father's face, then touched the bandages on his body, tears streaming down his face even more fiercely: "Dad, why have you lost so much weight? Are you injured? Are you in pain?"

Li Hu shook his head and forced a smile: "It's nothing, just a minor scratch. I didn't eat or sleep well outside, so I lost weight. I'll be fine after resting for a while back home."

Li An didn't believe it and lifted his father's clothes to see the wound, but Li Hu stopped him, took his hand and said, "An'an, Dad is really fine. Dad is lucky to be alive. These days, it's all thanks to your Grandpa Chen and Grandma Chen, and your Uncle Dashan, Uncle Xiaohe, and Uncle De. Your two aunts have been cooking delicious food for Dad every day, and look, Dad has even gained weight."

Ang Lee wiped away his tears, turned around, and bowed deeply to Mr. and Mrs. Chen: "Thank you, Grandpa Chen and Grandma Chen."

He then bowed to Chen Dashan, Chen Xiaohe, Su Xiaoyin, and Su Xiaoqing, saying, "Thank you, Uncle Dashan and Uncle Xiaohe, and thank you, Aunties."

Mr. Chen quickly waved his hand, "Son, don't be like that. We're all neighbors, it's only right."

Chen's mother walked over, took Li An's hand, and said with a smile, "An'an, your father is back. Aren't you happy?"

Ang Lee nodded vigorously, tears welling up in his eyes again, but this time they were tears of joy.

Chen's father said from the side, "Come, Li An, sit down and have a good talk with your father. He misses you terribly."

Li An moved a small stool and sat down next to his father, holding his hand tightly. Li Hu looked at his son, his eyes filled with love and relief. He reached out and patted his son's head, saying, "An'an, how are you doing at school?"

Ang Lee nodded: "Okay. The teacher praised me for memorizing quickly and for my good handwriting."

Li Hu smiled: "That's good. Father is counting on you."

Shi Tou, A Ji, A Fu, and Qing Qing also gathered around, chattering away. Shi Tou said, "Uncle Li Hu, you're finally back! Brother An An has been looking towards the village entrance every day, he's been missing you terribly."

Qingqing also said, "Uncle Li Hu, you need to take good care of your injury. My mother said that drinking more bone broth will help you recover faster."

Aji and Afu nodded in agreement, which made Li Hu laugh.

Just then, Su Xiaoyin poked her head out of the kitchen and called out, "Dinner's ready! We'll talk again after we eat!"

The children ran to wash their hands, and Su Xiaoqing helped serve the dishes. A large table was set up in the main room, with braised fish, chicken soup, braised pork, braised bamboo shoots, stir-fried greens, cucumber salad, and a large bowl of steaming dumplings.

The family sat together, chatting and laughing. Father Chen raised his glass to Li Hu and said, "Li Hu, this toast is to celebrate your safe return. You've survived a great calamity; good fortune is sure to follow."

Li Hu picked up the bowl, drinking tea instead of wine, his eyes reddening again: "Brother Chen, thank you. If it weren't for you taking care of An'an and me these past few days, I probably wouldn't be alive today."

Mr. Chen waved his hand: "Don't say such things. For the sake of the children, don't go into business anymore; it's too dangerous."

Li Hu nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, it won't happen again. I won't go anywhere else from now on; I'll just stay with Li An as he grows up."

Chen's mother put a piece of fish on Li Hu's plate and a chicken leg on Li An's plate, saying, "Eat more, you two need to nourish yourselves."

Ang Lee placed a chicken leg into his father's bowl: "Dad, you eat it."

Li Hu put the chicken leg back on his plate: "An'an, you eat it. Dad eats well every day at home, you should get some extra nutrition at school."

After some back and forth between the father and son, Chen's mother finally made the decision to split the money in half.

After dinner, the children played in the yard. Li An sat next to his father, not leaving his side for a moment. Li Hu leaned back in his bamboo chair, watching his son and Shi Tou chase a puppy around, a long-lost smile appearing on his face.

As the sun began to set, Li Hu said to Li An, "An'an, let's go home."